The Central Market of Riga is One of the Coolest I've Seen!

Good afternoon!

Back in June 2012, I stayed in Riga for a few days. If I knew beforehand how cool the city was, I would have stayed for over a week.

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This is my entry for the #MarketFriday initiative created by @dswigle.
Check out her post, if you want to participate as well: Market Friday and The Cherry Blossom Parade

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Today I bring you a few photos taken at the Central Market of Riga, which opened in 1930, and is still going strong. So strong that it was added to the UNESCO World Heritage list in 1988.

Let's begin by the entrance, which as you can see, is a wide staircase, with ramps for wheelchairs and market carts at the middle.

The market is made of several pavilions and barracks and you can find a vast array of products here. It's always buzzing with people.

As you can see, some of these stands are permanent - and not the usual stands that vendors set up in the morning and pack in the afternoon, as it happens in most European markets.

Over here, you can find everything from clothes and shoes, to tableware and cookware... and even newspapers and tobacco. There were also CDs and K7s, stereo players and other gadgets.

Of course not all stands are permanent and here, in these temporary set ups, is where you'll find all of the fresh vegetables and fruits that a market cannot live without. Just take a look at these cherries and strawberries, so fresh that you can almost taste them with your eyes!

But you can't eat the dessert without a meal first, right?

You'll also find everything you need to cook a soup, a salad or the siding for a main course. Once again, everything looks incredibly fresh, as if it was just picked up from the ground.

Not everyone was looking for fresh produce, though... and this lady was selling every kind of vegetable seeds you can think of. She was also selling diverse pieces of clothing... and a few mushrooms, too.

While most people were happily browsing around or making a deal, this girl was a bit bored, just waiting for the market to close. Too bad for her, it wasn't even lunch time - and her mom had a lot of stuff to sell before calling it a day.

She had a very cool outfit, didn't she? I guess that if you have to be bored, you might as well do it with style.

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While the majority of the stands and barracks were situated in the middle of the market, there was a lone stand, cast away from the rest of the market. My guess is that her alarm clock didn't wake her up and every other place was already taken when she got to the market.

The 107 metre high building that you see on the background is the Latvian Academy of Sciences.

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I'll leave you with a photo of the exit, which is also the entrance, as you've figured out by now...

So, making a full circle with this photo, I went searching for a place nearby to have lunch. I think I ended up in an Armenian Restaurant, a few minutes later!

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As a bonus, I'll share with you a cool aerial video of the Riga Central Market and its surroundings:

Video Source: https://www.rct.lv/en

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I hope you've enjoyed these photos. Don't be afraid to leave a comment, I won't bite.

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Camera	Canon IXUS 210
Location	Riga, Latvia
	Edited with GIMP

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